


Never Boring

by MeganMoonlight



Category: Stargate Atlantis
Genre: Friendship, Hurt/Comfort, Multi, Wordcount: 10.000-30.000, Wordcount: 5.000-15.000
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-01-31
Updated: 2012-01-31
Packaged: 2017-10-30 10:24:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 11,307
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/330706
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MeganMoonlight/pseuds/MeganMoonlight
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>And why did all this happen? Because he couldn't stand feeling useless when everybody else was busy, of course.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Never Boring

**Author's Note:**

> Written for Round One of **[JourneyStory](http://journeystory.livejournal.com/)**. "Stargate: Atlantis" and Ronon/Evan, because it looks like writing them goes me the best, as far as I've found out from a couple of people. And well, I do what I can to support my SGA OTP.
> 
> Well, my first Big Bang fic, guys. I'm incredibly proud of myself here. Huge thanks to **[Nickygabriel](http://nickygabriel.livejournal.com/)** for being a wonderful, helpful, amazing mod and making me participate and encouraging me, **[Sexycazzy](http://sexycazzy.livejournal.com/)** for the gorgeous banners, **[Stormkpr](http://stormkpr.livejournal.com/)** for helping me with beta and to my wonderful **[Nanuk-Dain](http://nanuk-dain.livejournal.com/)** for general thoughts and the manips! And thank to everybody who encouraged me and kept my fingers crossed for me (yes I'm looking at you, Martin. Thank you for helping me with arrangements, advices and being cool in general) Thank you so much!
> 
>  **ART by **[Sexycazzy](http://sexycazzy.livejournal.com/)** :** ****[*HERE*](http://sexycazzy.livejournal.com/131676.html)  
>  **ART by **[Nanuk-Dain](http://nanuk-dain.livejournal.com/)** :** ****[*HERE*](http://manor-archives.livejournal.com/29479.html)
> 
> Also can be found **[*HERE*](http://megan-moonlight.livejournal.com/478430.html)**

This was not what he’d expected when he’d thought he was bored and needed something to do. Sitting by the tree in the jungle, observing grey clouds on the sky, enjoying a sunset and feeling his arm going numb were not on the list of the activities he’d had in mind at the same hour on the day before. But at the moment he couldn't do anything else if he didn't want to risk being discovered by anybody who could cause them any more problems. And why did all this happen? Because he couldn't stand feeling useless when everybody else was busy, of course.

Now Ronon Dex was fighting the urge to groan as he tightened his hold on the unconscious body of Evan Lorne to bring him closer, sharing some of his body heat. Where the hell was Sheppard? He, Teyla and McKay had left him with Evan almost three hours ago, searching for signs of anything dangerous and making sure it was okay to spend a night in the not very big cave McKay had found by accident, while Parrish had been sent to look for something to eat. Ronon had been left near it to keep an eye on their potential camp and on Evan, who’d been unconscious for the last three hours.

Ronon looked at Evan out of the corner of his eye. His skin was unbelievably pale and his breathing shallow, so he couldn't only be asleep. The dark rings around his eyes made Ronon worry, but as Parrish had told him Even would be fine soon. The poison just had to wear off and get out of his system on its own; they couldn't do much more to help him. Ronon had tried to be patient, listening to McKay talking far too quickly and complaining that he wasn't a botanist andhad no idea he’d even touched it, while Parrish tried to calm them all down while trying to keep calm himself. Ronon couldn't help growling when McKay started to talk once again, even if he was trying to figure out what to do. After all it was McKay’s fault Evan was in this state. If he had paid attention to where he was going and what he was touching, nothing would have happened and they would have been able to keep walking.

  
Click on the thumbnail to see the art <3   
[ ](http://manor-archives.livejournal.com/29479.html)   


They had been walking to find some way to reach the stargate. Their 'jumper was no use anymore, destroyed by the natives who were less than friendly when they saw people on their land. The 'gate they used to get on the planet was off-limits because it was set in the middle of the field surrounded by houses and warriors. Ronon had seen enough of their security when they’d been running through the center of the village to get away from the guards - the way the natives were protecting the whole city and the 'gate, they’d barely got out of the city in one piece. In fact they had lost most of their weapons and now had no way to contact anybody either . Their only chance was finding the other 'gate - at least they knew there was more than one, even if they still hadn't figured out why. It was a good thing at least Sheppard and Teyla had learned more about the planet before they’d got here, because otherwise their situation would have been even worse.

While getting out of the city had been easy but finding out where they were and where should they go now was harder. At least most of Evan's team members had managed to get away, thanks to Evan who’d practically shoved them back through the 'gate, not even glancing back when losing the connection, he’d just grabbed Parrish by the vest to protect him, shoving him to make him run faster. After that everything had happened quickly, Sheppard and Teyla in the front, running, then McKay, Parrish and Evan, Ronon looking back, trying to figure out how to get out of the city. But Sheppard had kept claiming he had it all figured out. Without being noticed, which was harder than they’d thought at first. But they were out of town soon, entering the near forest as quickly as possible.

They’d kept running through the woods for a couple of hours until McKay had started to argue that they needed a break and, even without saying anything, Parrish had looked like he could use a rest. As much fun as the verbal sparring between Sheppard and McKay usually was, this time it was just a waste of time. Teyla, who’d kept quiet until then had put her hands on their shoulders, telling them they had to stay calm. McKay didn't seem to agree but Sheppard, had agreed with Teyla after one look at her. They’d decided to take a break. It had lasted about three hours, filled with planning and suggestions on what to do next and trying to fix their weapons, before they’d decided to leave their spot.

Two days later they’d still been in the middle of the forest, all of them growing more and more frustrated. When McKay and Sheppard had kept arguing over which way should they go, Evan had tried to lighten up the mood a little. Seeing that it didn't seem to work, he’d given up. Ronon had put a hand on his shoulder and squeezed lightly, moving it to the back of his neck, touching the warm skin. Evan had smiled lightly at him, and Ronon had returned it. Evan's little smiles always managed to make him feel a little better. It was definitely a part of Evan’s charm.

While passing through the darker parts of the forest, Ronon had noticed McKay leaning against a thin tree and suddenly something had cracked. Before anybody had realized what was happening, Evan had taken hold of McKay's shoulder, gripping it tightly to shove him away from the tree that had fallen to the ground loudly. Sheppard and Parrish had quickly caught McKay's other arm to keep him from falling. McKay had been breathing loudly, clutching at his arm and looking at the tree currently lying on the ground. Ronon had wanted to snap at him and tell him to be careful because they couldn't risk anybody finding out about them, but then a soft moan of pain had caught his attention.

He’d turned around to see Evan laying in a bunch of plants with large, blue leaves. The other man was blinking, shocked, and suddenly, out of the blue, his head had hit the ground. 

"Evan!" Ronon had let out a yell and he’d been kneeling beside his unconscious partner immediately. Everybody else had been by his side in the next second, helping Ronon carry Evan, making sure not to touch anything. But Ronon hadn’t cared about the plants, he’d just wanted to take Evan out of there as fast as possible. How had that happened? How could he have let this happen? He’d tightened his hold on Evan's body and picked up the pace, following McKay who managed to find a cave big enough to spend a couple of nights. Ronon, still holding Evan, had let Parrish take a look at him after checking out the plant itself. Using the water they’d managed to save they’d cleaned up the parts of Evan's skin that had been in contact with the plant, while Parrish who had been helping Ronon, had been talking about the symptoms. Ronon had growled after Parrish hadn't answered any of his questions.

"I... I don't know," Parrish had looked down on the ground, clearly uncomfortable with Ronon looking at him. "I never saw a plant like this before. I've seen similar ones before, but I don't know exactly how similar they are. I would have to do a lot of tests to make sure and now, I... I just don't know," he’d said quietly, still running a wet cloth down Evan's face. “I don’t know how he would react, how the poison would react to anything I could give him or…”

Ronon had stopped listening to him and just growled. Now, with Evan lying unconscious in his arms, he had no idea how a couple of days ago he could have been bored. Next time he would have to learn how to keep quiet.

***

Evan was doing paperwork again. One complication on a short mission that was supposed to be easy and there were a couple of hours added to their working hours. Unbelievable. Ronon didn't like it, but he knew that if he gave Evan time, the paperwork would be finished faster and they would have time for themselves - just the thought of the massage he’d promised to Evan made him made him grin. But he restrained himself from thinking about it. He’d learned that whenever he was starting to think about Evan he had a stupid grin on his face. Sheppard and McKay never missed the chance to comment on it when it happened and it was a good thing he had already gotten used to their teasing. And of course knowing that he could make them pay for it was a good thing.

It had all started a couple of days after Ronon and Evan had told their teams that they were in a relationship. Evan started to spend more time with him when he wasn't on missions, and Sheppard couldn't stop smirking whenever Evan smiled at Ronon and Ronon smiled back. He had to fight the urge to tell Sheppard something rude, but ended up doing something much more fun - using all the saved energy in sparring with Sheppard. It was incredibly satisfying to see him on the ground, breathing quickly, trying not to show any sights of pain and trying not to give up.

"You know I only joke about Lorne, right? It's really good you've found somebody..."

"I know," Ronon replied quickly, interrupting him. He wasn’t sure if he wanted to talk about feelings with Sheppard. It felt… not right.

"Don't want to know any details, but I'm really happy for you, buddy."

Ronon nodded, helped Sheppard get up after the other man had managed to catch his breath and had taken his shirt from the floor. Sheppard threw a shirt in Ronon's direction and smiled again . "So, wanna go eat something, or is Lorne waiting for you?" he asked and laughed when Ronon growled. "Don't tell me you can't take a joke, big guy," he winked "C'mon, let's go eat something. I'm starving."

"You sound like McKay," Ronon smirked in return.

"That," Sheppard made a face, "was not funny."

***

When Sheppard, Teyla and McKay came back saying the area seemed to be safe, they cleaned up the cave and tried to mask it so nobody besides them would be able to find it without searching thoroughly for it. Parrish helped to make everything look natural and full of details when it came to trees and plants. While they were preparing the cave, McKay sat inside, keeping an eye on Evan, and for the first time since they arrived on the planet, he tried to be quiet. When Ronon glanced in their direction, catching McKay staring at Evan, he had to fight a sigh. Everybody hoped Evan would get better soon.

It took them less time than they expected to prepare everything. Parrish was taking care of the fire, Sheppard once again checking the area, just in case, and Ronon was searching for something to eat while Teyla and McKay remained in the cave with Evan. They all wanted to get done as much as they could before sunset. They didn’t do half bad considering that they didn’t know the area. Soon they all were sitting by the fire, Evan lying on a pile of leaves with Parrish's bag under his head, Ronon sitting next to Evan's head, observing him. Ronon had managed to find fruits – he’d found them lying around the ground and then he’d spotted a tree. Some animals were eating the fruits, so he assumed they were good, which Parrish later confirmed, so at least they had something to eat. It wasn’t what they’d hoped for, but better than nothing. He hoped they would find something else along the way.

For a long time all of them remained silent. Ronon noticed that everybody appeared lost in thought, even McKay, who still kept looking at Evan from time to time, his expression not revealing much. But his eyes told Ronon enough to understand that the scientist felt guilty.

Sheppard was the one to break the silence when he got up, took off his vest and laid it on the ground.

"We have to decide what to do next," he said finally, running his hand through his hair. "The sooner we leave this planet the better, so finding another 'gate is our priority."

Ronon growled in frustration and wanted to mention Evan's state, but Sheppard quickly interrupted him. "I know, Ronon. That's why I said we should talk about it first. We don't know how long Lorne is going to be unconscious, but we really need a plan now. Parrish, how long do you think he's going to be out?"

Parrish, looking uncertain, glanced at Evan and then at Sheppard again. "I really don't know. I've never seen a reaction like that, but as I told Ronon earlier, if this is the same or even a slightly similar kind of plant as the one I did research on some time ago, it can take one or two days," he looked at his hands before continuing. "This plant looks similar, but without the proper equipment I can't say if it indeed is similar. Even a small difference can be significant and I just..."

"Okay, Parrish," Sheppard held up a hand, stopping Parrish's further explanations. "Relax. We get what you're trying to say We can't really do anything else for him, can we? Besides, you know, keeping him warm and all?"

"We cleaned him up rather quickly, so the venom wasn't in contact with his skin for too long, but we still... still don't know how strong the venom was and if the plant can cause any other infections, but..."

"Parrish, that's not what he asked!" Ronon finally snapped. He put a hand on Evan's shoulder and tried to relax when Sheppard assured him that everything would be fine, they just had to stay calm. Parrish closed his eyes, obviously trying to stay calm, too. Ronon felt the need to say more, but he knew it wasn't Parrish’s fault and it wouldn't help.

"Ronon, calm down," Teyla said, putting a hand on Parrish's forearm reassuringly. "Raising your voice will not help here and we really should focus on helping Evan now. David said we should wait a little longer, do not blame him."

"I don’t," Ronon murmured and once again looked at Evan's face, then at his chest, watching him breathe more calmly than earlier. It must have been a good thing, as far as he knew, but still it would be even better if he woke up soon. His breathing was back to normal at least, so maybe waiting wasn't such a bad idea after all. How could he be calm when Evan was lying there unconscious and there was nothing Ronon could do to help him? He tried to think, to focus. He really knew it wasn't Parrish's fault, that it wasn't even McKay's fault. Something like that could have happened to anybody; this time it was just Evan who had reacted, and if it hadn’t been him, McKay could be the one lying in the cave, unconscious. He really knew this all, but not being able to help his partner was still frustrating.

"We understand how you feel, Ronon," Teyla continued. "We will do everything we can to help him, but now we can only wait. That is what I think. It would be even more dangerous to travel when Evan is in this condition. We would be slow, and somebody would have to keep an eye on Evan instead of looking out for danger, and it would be easy for someone to surprise us." She looked around the cave. "We should be safe here for some time, and staying in one place will help us to focus on Evan, even if we have to be careful and try not to leave any traces that could lead anybody to the cave by accident," she finished. When nobody disagreed, Sheppard nodded.

"Good. That's settled, then. We're staying here until Lorne gets better. We can just hope Parrish is right and it won't take longer than three days," he sighed and looked at McKay. "What are you doing?"

McKay grabbed one more fruit, raising an eyebrow at Sheppard's question. "I'm eating. I'm nervous, I have to do something. And I have to get used to these if we're going to stay here any longer. We will find more before Lorne wakes up anyway."

Ronon rolled his eyes and wanted to comment on the fact that if it wasn’t for McKay they wouldn't have to wait for anything - they would have been out of here for a couple of hours by now - but one look from Teyla was enough to make him keep his thoughts to himself. He took hold of Evan's hand, squeezing slightly. He didn't know if with this gesture he was trying to reassure Evan or himself.

***

When he was about to go back to his room Ronon decided to check on Evan. Just in case that he finished earlier. He could hope, couldn’t he? But his lover was still in the middle of work. Ronon knew he would be lost if he even tried to start writing reports like Evan and Sheppard did, so he just entered Evan's room trying not to disturb too much. After all, he wanted the other man to finish quickly. He just wanted to spend some time with him, see how he was doing. Ronon couldn't help smiling when he saw Evan's face light up when he saw him.

"How are you doing?" Ronon asked, pointing at the papers lying on the desk. There were less of them when he’d left earlier so it was going well, he guessed.

"It will take some more time, but not as much as I thought at first," Evan replied and sighed. "Next time remind me to triple check all the weapons. I'm even going to do it myself if it means less paperwork if something happens. That must be the longest report I’ve written."

"Sorry to say it, but I still think that a gun can’t fire by itself," he said quietly and Evan didn't even try not to sigh and roll his eyes.

"And I don't believe anybody from my team could just shoot two innocent people, Ronon." The cold tone Evan’s voice meant that was the end of this subject. They didn't want to get into a fight. For Ronon, it was still unlikely, but if Evan trusted all his people, then he Ronon would try to do the same. Though it didn't mean somebody hadn't made the gun go off. After all somebody could have taken it and made sure it worked in the right time. He kept his thoughts to himself because they had talked about it already. There was no need to make Evan angry; the case was still was being investigated, so he decided to leave it to the specialists - or so Weird told him to do when he’d told her about his suspicions.

“Okay, sure.”

“Thanks. I will try to finish as soon as possible and after that, I’m all yours. ”

"Let me know when you’re done," Ronon said before leaving the room. It meant a couple more hours of doing nothing. Sheppard was with Teyla and they finally had some time for themselves, so he didn't want to disturb them. He couldn't go bother McKay. Usually it was fun to annoy the man and watch his ridiculous reactions, but this time he was doing something very important, besides pissing off all the other scientists, of course, and he had asked not to be disturbed. It meant most of the scientists were busy, too. Just before Ronon decided to go see how Parrish was doing, he remembered that Parrish was wrapped up in something important in his lab, too. Ronon really didn't like it when everybody besides him had something to do. It wasn't interesting to train alone and he wasn't in the mood for eating. He really hated boring days. He was about to go to his quarters and sleep when he decided there was one more place he could check out.

***

For two days, they waited.

They took shifts that night, Ronon first, and When he decided he needed to get some rest, he woke Sheppard up. The other man patted Ronon on the shoulder reassuringly and took up position next to the fire, rubbing his eyes gently.

"I will wake you up later. Try to get some sleep," Sheppard murmured, but the silence in the cave made the words sound loud and clear. Ronon nodded and lay down next to Evan on the ground, wrapping an arm around the other man's waist, bringing him a little closer.

He didn't want to go to sleep, he’d had a hard time closing his eyes for the past few days , even if he knew he should rest before they had to travel, because he wouldn’t be of any use if he was dead tired. And yet he wanted to be awake, just in case Evan woke up. He wasn’t supposed to wake up anytime soon, but Ronon really wondered if there was something more they could do to help his partner. Due to Evan’s condition, Parrish looked miserable, and McKay seemed even more concerned than he’d been before. Teyla kept reassuring them all from time to time, gently washing Evan's face with cold water, as Sheppard tried to have everything under control.

  
Click on the thumbnail to see the art <3   
[ ](http://manor-archives.livejournal.com/29479.html)   


Just thinking about it made Ronon tighten the hold on Evan's body. He finally managed to close his eyes when he felt Evan's arm moving. He sat up and looked at his lover, touching his arm gently. He noticed Sheppard kneeling next to him and Teyla taking place opposite to him after waking Parrish and McKay.

Evan's hand was clasped in his and his fingers suddenly tightened around Ronon’s. A soft moan escaped his lips and than a cough. Teyla touched her hand to Evan's forehead.

"Evan?" she asked quietly. There was no answer, just another pained moan.

"Lorne, do you hear us?" Sheppard tried, locking his eyes with Ronon for a moment when there was no answer, before looking at the unconscious man once again. "Come on, buddy, wake up. We need you to wake up."

"Come on," Parrish whispered. Ronon tightened his hold on Evan's hand again, hoping it would help.

"Ro... non..." Evan whispered hoarsely. When his eyes opened and focused on Ronon, Ronon squeezed his hand once more.

"I'm here," Ronon replied just as quietly.

Evan's weak smile made everybody exhale in relief. Sheppard patted him on the arm with a smile of his own, Teyla left her hand on Evan's forehead, telling him it was good to see him awake. Evan nodded at her, his eyes still closed, his eyes still closed, the light of the fire nearby was probably hurting his eyes after they’d been closed for so long, but when he opened them he nodded slightly at Parrish, who looked the most relieved. He didn't say anything, but the look on his face was enough to understand what he was thinking. 

Ronon noticed Evan's eyes focusing on McKay next, and heard the quiet inhale of breathing, as if it hurt Evan to do so, before he asked quietly: 

"Are you... okay?"

McKay grimaced, but nodded, and Sheppard rolled his eyes. Ronon knew why. It was like his partner to care about everybody else first, even if he himself had been unconscious for the last couple of days and had just woken up.

"Everybody's fine, Lorne," Sheppard told him quietly with a comforting look on his face, when Evan looked back at him. "You're the one who was unconscious. And you should tell us how you feel right now."

"Like... something ran me over," he replied, covering his eyes with his hand, rubbing lightly. "My head and my eyes kill me, too. And my neck itches."

"That would be the plant's fault, I guess," Ronon murmured and Evan looked at him.

"How long was I out?"

It took some time to answer all of Evan's questions and tell him in detail everything that had happened since he’d lost consciousness. Ronon sat next to him by the wall, ready to support him should it become necessary. Sheppard and McKay were out searching for food and water, Parrish sat quietly by the fire, trying to listen to Teyla and find out as much as he could about the unknown plant without the proper equipment. However the effort was mostly without any results, much to his disappointment. 

Evan claimed he felt better already. It seemed to be too soon, but they also knew that they couldn't spend much more time here if they wanted to find the 'gate. 

Teyla had just finished talking when Sheppard appeared in the cave, out of breath, snagging his jacket from the floor. Just when McKay entered the cave in a similar state, Sheppard looked at them.

"We have to get going. Quickly." He ran a hand through his hair. "We've seen guards from the city. We managed to hide, but I'm not sure how much time we have until they find us here. We really should get going. Lorne, do you feel well enough to walk?"

"Yeah, I will be fine," Evan replied right away and slowly got up, supporting himself on Ronon, obviously still dizzy. Ronon knew it wasn't going to go away anytime soon, but they really had to run. Evan sighed and a grimace of pain appeared on his face when he tried to stand on his own, but he tried not to make an issue out of it. Ronon hadn’t expected anything else from him. 

"Are you sure? Tell us now, because if you're not, we can just stay here. We will just have to take some more time to make this part of the woods look more... unused and put some more camouflage on the cave, but..."

Evan shook his head, interrupting Sheppard, and said that he just needed a little bit of time to make the dizziness go away. Sheppard nodded, and everybody started to pack the things they could use later. Ronon kept an eye on his lover bracing himself against the wall for support. They left the cave as soon as possible and Evan was determined not to show any signs of pain.

***

When Ronon reached his destination, the door opened and just when he thought nobody was inside, he saw Doctor Beckett sitting by his desk, apparently doing paperwork too. He was about to back away quietly when Beckett's voice surprised him.

"I didn't expect to see ye here," he pushed the last report away and looked at Ronon. "Is everything okay?"

"Yeah, Doc. Everything's fine. I was just..." he stopped and sighed. 'I was what? I was bored? Everybody else was busy and I have nothing to do? That sounded great, really.'

"Major Lorne is busy?" Beckett asked, a slight, comforting smile appearing on his face. He got up from the seat and put the paperwork away, focusing his eyes on Ronon.

Ronon nodded, not bothering to fight the sigh. It was good. At least Beckett seemed to have some time. He knew about Evan and Ronon's relationship too, just in case one of them got hurt, and it had proved to be a good decision to tell him about them. Beckett was different from the others. He rarely mentioned their relationship and didn’t mock or tease him about it, which was a nice change. He liked to talk with Ronon. Sometimes they just sat in Beckett's quarters, drinking scotch in companionable silence. This time they decided to eat before going to Beckett's quarters.

"It's good to finally eat somethin'," Beckett smiled, eating his sandwich. Ronon took only one as he wasn't hungry. Of course the doctor noticed. "Not very hungry today?"

"I ate before. With Evan," he shrugged and took a small bite of his sandwich. They settled on casual subjects not concerning missions. It was mostly Beckett talking, about what happened on Atlantis, and why everybody was busy. Ronon complained a little bit too, and it looked like Beckett also needed to get something off his chest. The doctor had enough of soldiers not being careful while sparring, mostly after sessions with Ronon.

Suddenly Ronon felt a hand clapping him on the back. He was about to turn around quickly when Peter Grodin already took a seat next to him, a cheerful smile on his face. 

"How are you?" he asked Beckett, only nodding at Ronon. Ronon nodded back, deciding to stay silent, because it was getting interesting. The Doc looked at Grodin, clearly flustered.

"Thank you, Peter, I'm fine," he replied, avoiding eye contact. Everyone Apparently that was it was the end for a while, or at least it seemed like it when all of them fell silent.

"And you, Ronon?" 

Ronon didn't know how Grodin could keep smiling like that all the time. "Fine, thanks," he replied and took the next bite of his sandwich. He rarely talked to Grodin; their only conversation tended to occur when he visited Beckett and they happened to be there at the same time. But until then he’d never paid attention to them spending so much time together. Now that he was thinking about it, it looked like they had been. At least Beckett had somebody else he could talk to.

Grodin only nodded and turned his head around to Beckett, who was about to finish his sandwich. "Doctor Beckett, I'll leave you everything you asked for on your desk. Is that okay?" he asked and Beckett nodded again.

"Yes, Peter. That would be nice."

Grodin smiled again and left as quickly as he’d appeared. Beckett looked at his empty plate and sighed quietly, but not quietly enough for Ronon to miss it. He was sure that if Beckett would ever want to talk about anything, he knew he could talk with him. He wanted to say something, so he ended up commenting on the scientists' job and it seemed like he’d done something right, because suddenly Beckett was back to talking freely, and he wasn't so flustered anymore. The chat was exchanged with a comfortable silence. After spending more time with Beckett, Ronon felt better. He didn't know how much time had passed, so he decided to get back to Evan.

***

It was harder to move with Evan still weak and looking extremely pale. Taking breaks was necessary, but nobody said anything every time Sheppard or Teyla insisted on taking them. Evan was trying to pretend he was fine and ready to go, of course, and if not for his pale skin, Ronon would have believed him, but just one look at his partner was enough to know that they had to stop and take break more often. It didn’t matter how much he wanted to be back on Atlantis and make Evan visit Beckett, now they had to focus on getting back safely.

He had no idea how to reassure Evan that everything was fine. When a break was planned, the expression on Evan's face changed rapidly whenever Ronon sat down next to him, patted him on the arm or got closer to him in any way. It was frustrating but nobody could blame him. Ronon probably would have behaved the same way if he’d been injured, trying not to slow down the team. It just felt wrong when Evan was hiding from him like that. Ronon didn’t like it at all.

They all hoped the night would bring some more comfort for all of them; after all it was the only time all of them could rest, even if only for a couple of hours. It was a time to try to relax, forget for a couple of hours and, in Evan's case, take a chance to recharge before they would have to leave again.

It was Ronon’s turn to take watch that night. He sat by the rock to have a clear view on the others and of the whole field they’d set camp in. He wasn't tired. He just sat there observing, making sure everything was fine. Parrish was laying closest to the fire, covered with his jacket as securely as he could, distress obvious on his face, even if in sleep. McKay was sleeping a couple of feet further away, facing away from the rest, but seemed calmer than Parrish. Sheppard had his arm wrapped loosely around Teyla in a comforting but protective embrace.

Ronon knew he wasn't the only one who was awake. It wasn't hard to notice; every time he lookiedin his direction, Evan closed his eyes, pretending to be asleep. Ronon wished he could do something, say something, to make Evan rest, but in the end he let his lover do what he wanted. Evan still didn't feel well, but at least he’d stopped hiding and didn't flinch anymore whenever Ronon touched him. He was resting next to Ronon, but even when pretending to sleep, his hand tightened slightly on Ronon's, and Ronon always squeezed back. 

He was getting better and that was the most important thing for Ronon.

It took them about three days to get out of the woods. Nobody tried to hide the relief when, instead of trees and leaves, there was a wide open field before them. But as happy as they were, it was hard to hide the fact that on an open field, they were an easy target. If they were being followed, it wouldn’t be wise to take any breaks somewhere where it was so easy to get to them, especially since Evan still wasn't in the best condition.

Ronon looked around to spot any places they could use to take a break, but there wasn't much - all spots were too obvious. Sharing a look with Sheppard and Teyla, he exhaled deeply. If they chose to go this way, they clearly wouldn’t be able to take any breaks.

"Okay, guys. Looks like we have two options," Sheppard said, running a hand through his hair. "If we go through the field, we won't be able to make any stops on the way, but it's quicker. More dangerous, but shorter - or at least it seems to be. Or we can take the longer, safer way, sticking to the border of the forest and see where it will lead us. We won't be in the open and it would be better if we needed to hide, but we don't know where we will end up. I don't remember seeing this part on the map,” he sighed and looked at them. “So, what do you think?"

In the end, after Evan had insisted that he felt good and they could choose the short way, they decided upon the way through the field. None of them felt too good about it, but it indeed was the quickest way, if Sheppard remembered correctly. Ronon even pretended not to hear McKay's complaining by distracting himself by with talking with Evan, and sometimes with Parrish.

"I'm just saying, if we had taken the longer way we could have..." McKay started, but Sheppard just rolled his eyes at him.

"I thought you wanted to leave this planet as soon as possible and now you keep complaining. Besides, you weren't opposing when we chose the way. Getting back now would be much more risky and we just would have..."

"...wasted time," Teyla finished for him. She turned her head to look at McKay. "We don't know which way would be safer, but the sooner we leave, the sooner we will be able to rest, Rodney." 

Sheppard smiled at her words.

"See? If you don’t want to listen to me, listen to Teyla. And if you keep talking, Ronon will gag you. Complaining doesn't help."

Ronon, who was quietly listening to the whole exchange, couldn't help grinning. And it made him happy to see a smile appear on Evan's face as well. Soon they all were laughing, even Parrish who still looked a little bit uncertain, still worrying about the effects the plan could have had on Evan. McKay wasn't happy at all and kept complaining, but it was obvious he was less nervous than before, considering the circumstances. Better this than nothing.

They didn't have many reasons to smile after that. The open field was dangerous as they found out soon. They weren't attacked, but Parrish noticed traps in every place that was fit to stay in. It could mean two things: that they were being tracked and that somebody had been sent to make sure they wouldn't survive their journey, leaving traps in most of the possible places. Or that people living on this planet really were not the best hosts and the traps were meant to eliminate anybody who appeared here. Before every stop they decided to check the area first, even if there weren't many opportunities to take any breaks. Even the most quiet sound could mean trouble here if they weren’t careful enough. Most of the way they kept quiet to better focus on everything around them.

The field was definitely larger than it had seemed at first glance. They ended up stopping for a longer while only when Evan almost fell to the ground. Parrish and Ronon quickly caught him. Fortunately they were near a small spot covered by yellow grass, surrounded by rocks and stones. It wasn't the most comfortable place, but it had to do. Their break didn't last long Evan once again assured them that he was okay, that he just needed something to drink. Ronon and Sheppard weren't so sure, but they didn't argue. Afterwards, when they were walking again, Ronon and Parrish took the rear, Sheppard and Teyla walking in the front, leaving McKay with Evan in the middle, which Ronon insisted on - this way he could catch Evan if anything happened. He hoped it wouldn't come to that though.

***

Entering Evan's quarters, prepared to talk him into taking a break and do something relaxing, Ronon noticed the other man asleep, his head lying on one arm as he breathed softly.

Approaching his lover quietly, Ronon took the reports from the desk. The reports seemed finished ,or so it looked at the first glance. He knew they were important and Weir was waiting for them. One look at Evan's signature at the bottom of the pages, Ronon retreated as quietly as he could with the reports, leaving the sleeping man in peace. Of course Weir raised an eyebrow, looking amused, when he handed her the reports. He really had no idea why everybody on Atlantis reacted like that every time he did something for Evan, but he got bored of asking why when nobody bothered to answer him anyway. He just hoped it would end soon because it was irritating.

He left Weir to her work when she wished him a good day. Well, it could have been better if he could have spend more time with Evan or find somebody else who wasn't busy at the moment. He had no idea what to do with himself. Still nobody to train with, all his weapons were clean and ready to use, no missions, no one needed any help and... Ronon felt out of place, not needed. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d felt like that. 

Back in his room, Evan didn't protest too much when Ronon woke him up to put him to bed. 

"I'm sorry, Ronon," he yawned in the middle of the sentence. "I don't even remember falling asleep. I finished everything - I just have to take them to Elizabeth and then we can..."

"She already has them. I took them to her when you were asleep," Ronon interrupted. At Evan's confused look he just shrugged. "You said they were important and you looked like you needed to rest, so I took them. You didn't want her to see them yet?" he asked, hoping he hadn’t done something wrong. He hadn’t thought about it when he’d taken the reports. If Evan got into trouble because of him...

"No, they were ready," Evan replied quietly, obviously fighting back another yawn. "Thanks. You are right. I could use a break. I don't know, lately I'm more and more tired. I thought it might pass, but well, no luck so far."

"Maybe a new mission would help you? I could use one."

"I think I have had enough missions for a while, thank you very much. Too much paperwork," Evan smiled when he lay back on the bed shirtless, his eyes closed. “I think a day or two of getting regular sleep would work a lot better.”

Ronon, sitting on the corner of the bed, looked at his lover's face. His expression was relaxed, lips turned into a sleepy smile. Evan stretched his arms and put them behind his head. It was good to see him like that, finally not caring about anything, able to rest and looking content, a look Ronon liked to see on his face. He was different when he was laying like that, not protecting himself from anything, just being himself.

"Are you staying?" Evan asked after a couple of seconds, still not opening his eyes. The tone of his voice was hopeful, and Ronon was glad he wasn't the only one who wanted the closeness after all the time the missions had been the number one on their list of priorities. Without taking his clothes off, he took a spot beside Evan. When he turned on his side, Evan's hand sneaked into his, linking their fingers together and squeezing softly. One simple gesture from the other man and Ronon quickly considered this moment as the best part of the day. He couldn't sleep - he didn't feel like it - but just lying there next to his lover was enough to make him stop thinking. Just focusing on his presence near him, comforting him just as he hoped he comforted the other man in return.

***

Thinking that something could happen at any moment was a motivator in their situation. They weren’t taking many breaks, kept walking as fast as they could without risking anything happening to anybody. When they finally saw the end of the field, they couldn't hide their relief. Sheppard hugged Teyla and clapped Parrish and Ronon on the back with a huge smile.

"That's it! This part I remember from the map. The gate should be right there, just behind this forest. It's not very far; there will be a smaller field. We have to go this way," he said, exhaling with relief.

"Are you sure?" Ronon asked and Sheppard nodded once.

"You really remember these maps so well?" McKay wondered, looking worried. "You know, it's been... I don't know, three weeks since we were here."

"Don't worry, McKay. I do remember. Come on, let's enter the forest and take a short break. I think we all could use it."

Everybody nodded, and they used the time to eat their last rations, the last fruits they had managed to find. Their mood was considerably brightened. Parrish and Teyla were smiling, and McKay was already planning what would he do first when he got back to Atlantis. Evan just sat next to Ronon, laughing when McKay mentioned eating, shaking his head. He laid one hand on Ronon's knee, squeezing softly.

And Sheppard was right. Soon, they laid eyes on the 'gate. In the middle of the field, already activated, some people going through it - but that wasn't what they cared about. At least it was activated and working, that was the most important thing.

The 'gate was under observation with four soldiers, protecting it. They didn't look like they would give up without a fight. They needed a plan. Sheppard looked at the field, running a hand through his hair as he bit his lip. Seeing him, Teyla got up from the ground and gently laid her hand on his shoulder.

"John? Is everything alright?"

He turned around and exhaled loudly. "Yeah, everything's fine. Just thinking of our possible options. At least there aren’t many guards there. I think I know how we're going to get there," he said and then looked at Ronon. "But we need a diversion."

Soon Ronon was standing by the trees with the rest of the team, making sure everybody was fine. Sheppard stayed in his position, closer to the 'gate. He looked back, nodded and disappeared behind the trees. Now they just had to wait for Sheppard's sign.

"Teyla, you, Evan and McKay will go this way. The two guards seem not to focus on the west side too much," Ronon said, pointing on the left side of the forest and the 'gate. "You can go right away and take a position near the gate, Sheppard will get there once he’s made sure there will be no surprises from the other sides. Just take position and wait for his sign."

"What the sign will it be?" Parrish asked looking in the direction of the 'gate.

"We'll know. There are not many things he can do to not make them suspicious, so he probably will go for a noise," Ronon answered. He also didn't know - there was not much time to think about everything; they just knew the basics and had to make sure everything would go well.

"What if…" McKay started, but Ronon interrupted him right away.

"If we do everything as planned, we will get out of here soon. Just look out for Sheppard," he said, then turned to Parish who looked even more pale than usual. "You okay?"

"Yes. Yes, just... nervous."

"Listen, we will go the other way. It will be the longest distance and we will have to move quickly. We have a clear view on the 'gate and the two soldiers on the right. One of them seems to be tired, so that will be our chance. Just stay close to me. Got it?"

"Yes."

Ronon nodded again. Going through the whole plan once again in his head he got up from the ground and looked in the direction of the soldiers. He exhaled softly. "We should go. Parrish, give me your bag. I will carry it."

Before they parted ways Ronon looked once more at Evan and laid his hand on his shoulder, squeezing gently. Evan looked at him and smiled, covering the hand on his shoulder with his own. "See you soon," he whispered and the next minute he, Teyla and McKay were gone, leaving Parrish and Ronon alone.

Ronon noticed Parrish’s worry and nervousness. The other man kept twitching, looking in various directions, obviously not knowing what to do. Ronon sighed and sat down next to him. He had to do something to make the other man focus on their plan or they would fail.

"Stop thinking about what might happen," he said trying to calm Parrish, hoping he sounded reassuring. They had to focus on what they had to do. "Parrish, look at me." When he did, Ronon continued, "Listen, you have to focus. The sooner we get everything right and get to the 'gate..."

"I... I know. I do. I just... I can't stop thinking. I know what I have to do, but..."

"We will get out of here. Come on."

***

The next days were even more quiet, if that was even possible. It was slowly killing Ronon. Once again he approached Sheppard to ask if he could help with something but the answer was still the same. Only the scientists were mentioned and since Ronon had no idea how he could help them without getting annoyed he decided to settle on not doing anything. Sheppard, who lately was focused mostly on meetings with the other teams about the supplies, patted him on the back, trying to be reassuring.

"I'm sorry, Ronon. I know you feel bored and all, and I wish I could find something for you to do, but..."

"I know, Sheppard, thanks," Ronon cut him off.

Sheppard scratched the back of his head. "Maybe you want to go with me and help me with the supplies? It's not much and there probably won't be a lot to carry, mostly just checking if everything is right, but it's something to do. Or maybe Parrish still has some of his boxes of plants to move, so maybe he could find you something. How about Lorne? Did you ask him?"

"No. He's busy and..." Ronon shrugged slightly and Sheppard smiled, probably understanding.

"You don't want to bother him, huh?"

"Everybody's busy." 

"Are you sure you don't want to help the scientists? Maybe it won't be so bad, you know."

"I'm sure, Sheppard," he sighed. He couldn't believe it. He was actually whining. Great. But Sheppard didn’t seem to notice. Or at least he pretended not to, for which Ronon was grateful.

"Okay, then. I'm not really surprised," Shappard admitted with a sheepish smile. "Zelenka and McKay together in one room for so long would be too much for everybody. It's weird enough that we didn't hear about them killing each other or anybody else yet. It's been days since they started working on some new theory about the 'gate." He patted Ronon on the back briefly. "Okay, I should go now. I will try to find you something to do when we finish with the supplies, okay? Until then, I don't know, maybe you can check up on Beckett or Teyla? Maybe she can find something for you or maybe her people need some help." With that Sheppard left and Ronon sighed. Talking with Teyla seemed like a good idea at the moment.

Just as he had hoped, Teyla was in her quarters. When she answered, she smiled softly at seeing him.

"Hello, Ronon. How are you?" she asked when he entered the room and sat on the floor, taking his usual place by the small table.

"Fine," he answered shortly, but when he saw her raising one eyebrow in question he sighed. "Fine, it’s just that everybody's doing something and I don't have anything I could do," he added after a few seconds.

Teyla smiled reassuringly at him and soon they both were sitting on the floor, side by side. Ronon listened to all the ideas his friend came up with. It was really impressive how many suggestions she had to offer. They settled on taking a break from the subject and Teyla told him about helping her people with settling down and dealing with new ideas to make people's lives better. It was good to hear they were settling in well and that there were no problems. He offered to help if needed, and Teyla smiled at him and squeezed his hand in thanks. When she offered him a second cup of tea the door opened and Sheppard entered, a huge smile on his face. It got even wider when he noticed Ronon. He approached them and dropped a kiss on Teyla's head.

"Hey. Everything went well?" he asked, sitting down next to her.

"Yes, very good," she answered. "And you? It's hard not to notice your good mood. Did something happen?"

"Well, finishing checking all the supplies itself can be considered as a good thing, but since Ronon is here, listen," he turned to Ronon. "I talked to Elizabeth and we decided that all of our soldiers, and a couple of scientists who probably wouldn't mind, could use more training. The breaks between the missions get longer and longer because Elizabeth thinks we need more time to relax. In order for everybody to train more to keep up and be prepared. So, between the basic training we can add some additional hours. And you can train them, weapons, sparring... Elizabeth agreed when I brought it up and it doesn't take long to set everything up- we will just let everybody know," he smiled and inhaled. "How does that sound?"

Ronon blinked and nodded without thinking about it. Sheppard promised to let him know the details before he turned to Teyla. That was Ronon's clue to leave. Sheppard and Teyla needed some time alone, too, after all. From the absence of people in the corridors Ronon concluded it must have been late, so he headed to Evan's quarters. Nodding at a couple of soldiers who wished him a good night, he entered the corridor and then his lover's quarters.

He didn't fight the grin when he noticed Evan sprawled on the side of the bed Ronon usually used. Face hidden in the pillow, one leg under the covers, the other one on top of them. Just looking at him made Ronon smile. He approached the bed and shook Evan's shoulder lightly. Evan really should eat something or he would feel even worse later. Ronon knew a thing or two about it after so much time spent with Evan, and he was sure Evan hadn’t eaten anything since finishing the reports.

"Ronon?" Evan's sleepy murmur seemed a lot louder in the silence of the room. "What time is it?"

"Midnight, maybe," he replied quietly. When Evan let out a frustrated growl, he smiled. "You know, it was you who taught me that going to sleep hungry is a bad idea."

"Smartass," the other man grumbled. "I... really dislike it when you use my own advice against me, you know."

"And I really dislike it when I end up working with McKay and Zelenka at the same time because somebody-" here he smirked at Evan, "-thinks for some reason that it’s funny. Now come and eat something or I will carry you and force-feed you," he said. He patted Evan's back playfully, letting his hand linger there for a little longer, touching the warm skin through the shirt, enjoying the intimacy of the moment as he slipped his hand under the fabric, softly caressing the warm skin.

Evan just smiled lazily and finally got up from the bed. They weren't the only people who’d decided to eat something. Evan nodded at the soldiers and greeted the scientists they passed on the way. Zelenka and McKay were woring on a huge project, something to do with the stargate, had most of the scientists on Atlantis working in shifts. Eating took more time than Ronon liked, but talking to Evan was never boring and he couldn’t help it, he really wanted to tell Evan about the new training sessions; he just preferred to do it in their quarters.

He wasn't wrong. His lover was happy for him. Ronon told him about the chat with Teyla and Sheppard, not finding anything to do and everybody being busy. Then he saw the look on Evan's face that told him Evan attempt to apologize and Ronon quickly regretted telling everything. He hadn’t meant to make the other man feel guilty. Ronon really understood orders and responsibilities. He groaned and tried not to snap at Evan.

“Ronon, I’m sorry, I didn’t realize…”

"That's not what I meant,” Ronon interrupted quickly. “I'm not blaming you or anything. I’m just saying that I wanted to have something to do, too, I hate... feeling useless," he explained, hoping Evan would stop with the puppy eyes because he knew he couldn't resist this look. 

"You could have come to me, you know," Evan said finally. "We could have found something for you to do. David still has boxes to move, plants to prepare, maybe I could talk with Radek so why not just..."

"You were busy, too," Ronon simply answered, rolling his eyes. "No reason to bother you." Why couldn't Evan understand? They could have already been in bed, relaxing together - instead here they were, Evan still looking guilty and Ronon thinking about how he could finally explain to his lover that it wasn't important. It was over anyway.

***

Ronon took the backpack and moved quietly in the direction planned earlier with Sheppard. Parrish still looked like he wasn't sure, so Ronon just advised him to try to stay close and follow his lead if they wanted to get in to the position by the 'gate as soon as possible. Trying to stay quiet and move quickly at the same time proved to be easier than Ronon had expected from how Parrish had looked like before. Now, keeping an eye on the botanist, he saw that when the other man was determined and actually focused on something instead of on the consequences, he changed to the point that it would be easy to mistake him for another person. He wasn’t at all like the man who kept over-thinking everything, was pale and couldn't concentrate. He had never seen Parrish like this before, but even if the circumstances weren't the best, he was glad he had this chance. Parrish was a good man.

A lot of time had passed, or at least it seemed like it, since they’d moved from their original position. Seconds seemed like minutes, minutes like hours and the area seemed to be a lot larger than they had expected. Were Teyla, Evan and McKay already at their position, would they get there on time if they weren’t? Ronon knew he wasn't the only one wondering about this, wondering, but they had to be quick and careful. They didn't know if the forest was guarded in any way, whether or not the soldiers were still there, if they called for the backup - after all, new soldiers could appear any minute, making the escape impossible... Ronon shook his head and focused on moving forward.

He’s heard Parrish's sigh of relief when they could already see the 'gate from their position between the trees. It meant they were in the position. They had a clearer view than they’d expected; the soldiers were visible just as well as the field around the 'gate. The guard hadn’t moved since Ronon and Sheppard had observed them earlier and, at least for now, it looked like nobody was coming to meet them. Ronon turned his head to look at Parrish, asking him if he was okay.

"I'm good," he replied quietly, looking nervously in the direction of the natives. "So, Colonel Sheppard is going to get their attention?"

"Yes. Teyla, Evan and McKay are the closest to the 'gate, so when the guards are be busy with catching Sheppard, they will leave the 'gate partially unprotected, so we can activate it and call Atlantis. The rest will get through, you next, I'll go help Sheppard and then..."

He didn't finish the sentence, he didn't have time, because just then he heard something similar to the barking of a dog. However he knew it wasn’t truly made by a dog.

"Come on, that's the sign!"

He turned around when he saw Sheppard. He was running in the direction of the stargate, holding some kind of a shield. Ronon couldn't see what exactly it was, but it seemed to work just fine because the effect was just as they had predicted: Two of the soldiers left their position heading in Sheppard's direction, aiming at him with their weapons. One of those who stayed on the position was looking around the field and seemed to be calling back up. Sheppard barely managed to escape into the woods again, and then two soldiers - yelling in a language he couldn't understand, entered the woods after him.

There was no time - they had to get to the other two guards quickly. Ronon moved, hoping Parrish was running right behind him. When they were on the field, he quickly looked around and saw Teyla already fighting with one of the soldiers and McKay already standing by the 'gate, activating it. Ronon turned around, took off the backpack and handed it to Parrish, ordering him to run and help McKay. When the other man nodded Ronon tried to spot Evan, but when he heard a yell in the forest he left Teyla, McKay and Parrish with the 'gate and headed quickly towards the woods, trying to catch a sight of Sheppard or at least of any kind of movement. 

When he didn't spot anything, he moved deeper into the forest. He hoped the 'gate was already prepared. Just then he heard the crack of a piece of broken wood. He quickly turned around and barely managed to avoid the hit to his head. Suddenly a blade appeared in the soldier's hand and trying to avoid the next attack, Ronon grabbed him by the vest, pulling violently and hitting him in the face while at the same time blocking his hands so the blade wouldn't touch him. When his opponent coughed and spat blood on the ground, Ronon hit him in the back. He bent down to pick up the blade from the unconscious soldier. Just as they had planned, not killing anybody, if they could help it. They had enough problems without that adding to it. Ronon sighed and got up. At least the soldiers weren't much of a challenge. He looked around to search for Sheppard again. Where could have he gone? Damn it, why did Sheppard have to keep disappearing like that?

He was about to run deeper into the forest when he heard a familiar voice yelling.

"Ronon, here! Quickly!"

He turned around and saw Sheppard waving at him. He was holding the shield and one of the weapons the soldiers had and it looked like he was injured. He left the soldier on the ground and headed to the stargate quickly. In the open field Ronon looked around again. There was still no sign of Evan. He hadn't been there when Ronon and Sheppard reappeared on the field, Ronon hadn't spotted him while they’d been fighting, nobody had said anything... the thought that Evan might not escape, he'd be left here...

"Ronon, damn it! Come on! Their back-up is here!"

Ronon turned around to see that indeed, the back-up had arrived. A small army of soldiers walking their way, all of them already aiming at them with their weapons and getting closer very fast. He quickly looked around, still hoping to spot Evan, but then he felt a tight grip on his shoulder and Sheppard pulling him toward the 'gate.

"Ronon, move. We don't have time," he said impatiently, but Ronon still tried to look around for something that could belong to Evan. He just wasn't going to leave him here, especially now when the whole army was getting here.

"Evan..." 

The soldiers got closer. Just when Ronon was about to turn around something hit the ground next to his feet. More shots aimed at them and then Ronon quickly got to the 'gate. Teyla, McKay and Parrish were already on the other side, but Ronon just couldn’t leave, not now. He made a move in the direction of the forest, he wasn’t going to leave Evan. In the next second somebody grabbed his arm, and before he managed to realize what was going on, he was on Atlantis.

***

Ronon lay in his bed, looking at the ceiling, re-thinking everything that had happened in the past month, everything he'd felt, everything that he remembered so clearly and could see so well. Every time he closed his eyes he saw something that made him want to hit something. He had to get out of the room more and stop thinking or else it would get worse. He should have been happy that they’d finally got out, that they we are fine and that Weir was handling the situation, trying her best to deal with all the aspects of the visit to the planet that hadn’t gone as planned. He felt better, of course, but since he got used to Atlantis, staying off-world for so long was harder now than it had been before, back when he’d been used to travelling and running.

Walking around Atlantis seemed to be better than doing nothing. He was rested, he had eaten, he had taken a long shower, and just then he realized that walking without any reason had its perks. He turned into the next corridor and something connected with him, sending a pile of papers and a communicator down to the floor. Parrish apologized quickly, a sheepish smile on his face as he started to collect the papers. Ronon noticed the other man looked better already, a lot better, definitely surer of himself now than he’d been on an off-world mission. He talked more to Ronon, too, for some reason. Not that Ronon was complaining. Parrish was in the middle of testing the foreign plant, so far unsuccessfully, but he seemed to enjoy his job at least. He was determined to find out more about the plant and Weir was interested in the results of Parrish's research, so Ronon just wished him good luck and left, not wanting to take any more of his time. Besides, he’d just got an idea where he could go.

Ronon stepped into the infirmary and he immediately spotted Doctor Beckett standing by one of the beds, talking. He had a small smile on his face.

"Everything looks just fine - there's no trace of any side effects from the venom of the plant. Good thing it wasn't anything too dangerous. But I think you can expect headaches. Your body has to get rid of the toxins on its own. Even a small, bloody headache can be a pain after all your body has been through, lad. I think all ye need is one more day off to just rest, it should help. I assume it's not going to be a problem?"

"No, Doc, it won't," Ronon replied suddenly and when Beckett turned to look at him, the understanding in his eyes made Ronon feel better.

"Good. That's all, then."

"Thanks, Doc." 

Ronon smiled to himself when Evan stood up from the bed and both of them headed to Evan's room. It was good to see that Evan was better already. Three days after they had all got back safely from the planet, one day since Evan was able to get back to his quarters.

  
Click on the thumbnail to see the art <3   
[ ](http://manor-archives.livejournal.com/29479.html)   


Everything Ronon had felt when he thought about their escape, how he hadn't seen Evan on the planet, came back to him in a rush. All the second thoughts that had appeared and the urge to get back, just in case, just before he saw Evan, already there on Atlantis, waiting for him with the others, made him shudder, but he tried to hide it. He forced himself to stop thinking about the planet and focused on the here and now, and the fact that Evan smiled at him. He hadn’t even noticed that they’d arrived. Evan lay down on the bed without taking his clothes off and sighed loudly.

"So, I have one more day of rest, and probably a couple more before anybody will let me do something that is an actual job," he said, smiling at Ronon. "Are you sure you will be able to survive here with me and not get bored?"

"You don't even have to ask.

  
[ ](http://sexycazzy.livejournal.com/131676.html)   



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